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Hello.. I recently was emailed by a Toyota Dealer Ship in Santa Monica, California stating that 5 Prius's have arrived to the their lot for sale.. Not telling them that I already bought my Prius, I called them up out of curiousity.

The Santa Monica Toyota Dealership Dealer told me that these Prius's For Sale That came in are STAGE 1's and used(Pre-Owned), selling starting at $27,900.oo . Man, these were used 2004 Prius's.. I thought it was a mistake at first because Stage #9's sell for $26,000.00 . Sure enough, the dealer confirmed that these were HOT COMMODITY Cars in the market and were basically, playing the "supply and demand" game.. I called various dealers in Southern California and they told me the same thing.. :x

Anyways, its definitely not fair and full of BS in ripping off consumers big time!! They even said when their brand new package #9's come in, they will not be sold for $26,000.00 . They said that there was a premium mark up on these cars up to $6,000.00 more! I even heard that these cars are bought from dealers and sold for more on ebay:!:

Im just glad I got my Millennium Silver 2004 Prius(package #9) earlier and on time in the beginning of April, avoiding the "supply and demand rip-off game".. :x

If anyone has experience getting ripped off or about to be ripped off, I would like to hear your feedback..

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Hi
Have talked before on this forum about the dealership adding their own sticker next to Toyota's and my not knowing the difference. Have told Toyota in survey and a friend is suggesting I write to Toyota district manager. Expect I won't return to this dealership for repairs -- don't trust them, but I did get one right off the truck on a Tuesday after starting to look on the previous Thursday, when other dealers in the state were telling me all the 04s were spoken for. Wanted dark interior and guy that came in after me got the demo with the dark interior. But I love the car I got, bought waterproof seat covers for my dogs, and am resigned to enjoying what I've got. Hearing of other rip-offs makes me feel a little better. Wonder what Toyota thinks about all this.
Greg
04 white #6

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I was on two Seattle area dealers' lists and also with a car broker service my company has used. I received a call from another dealer offering me my choice of a white number 7 or a silver number 9, both at 3k over MSRP. The dealer was quite openly admitting that the markup was "because we can get it". If the cars weren't sold in 72 hours, they would hold out for the highest offer.
Two days later, my dealer number one called me to tell me that they were jacking the price up 1k; this even before they would give me any sort of confirmation as to when I would receive a car, if ever.
I learned that this dealer, who had been telling prospective buyers that the wait would be 3-4 months, was getting only one Prius a month, on average. I was also told that there were at least 50 people on his list. I did some quick over-the-phone math and concluded that the wait would more likely be 4 years at the rate he was getting cars.
I was finally offered a used Prius by my car broker, who said it was all she could find. The dealer selling the car to her wanted 1700k over MSRP, but that it would include extended warranties. It was my least favorite color and a number 1 package. I was about to go with that when someone on a chatline, knowing my preferences, told me that my exact car was sitting on a lot in Moses Lake, WA, about three hours drive from Seattle.
I called them and sure enough, they were most happy to sell me my lovely blue Prius number 7, at retail. Not only that, they were a pleasure to deal with.
Moral of the story: look to small towns. Dealers there can't afford to be screwing around with their customer base because they have so few. They probably know everyone in town and if they pulled off the stuff the big city guys are doing, they'd be out of business fast.
One guy on my chatline came all the way up from Palm Springs to take delivery, and drove it back. Happy guy.
The dealer: James Toyota, Moses Lake WA 509-765-4517. If you call and actually get a car, please tell them Bob Allen sent you. I like to pass on good karma.
It's market capitalism in action, folks, as much as we despise what's going on and how it plays monkey with the minds of people on waiting lists. The eBay thing is just a variant of the inherent greed in this society.
Strange, that a car with such great environmental "near Buddhist" credentials should become a vehicle (no pun) for such bad behavior.
On the other hand, if I had a Prius to sell, I would probably go with the highest bidder, so I can't get too sanctimonious here. Best of luck to those on the list. We're pulling for you.
Bob

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I recently was emailed by a Toyota Dealer Ship in Santa Monica, California stating that 5 Prius's have arrived to the their lot for sale

The Santa Monica Toyota Dealership Dealer told me that these Prius's For Sale That came in are STAGE 1's and used(Pre-Owned), selling starting at $27,900.oo . Man, these were used 2004 Prius's.. I thought it was a mistake at first because Stage #9's sell for $26,000.00 . Sure enough, the dealer confirmed that these were HOT COMMODITY Cars in the market and were basically, playing the "supply and demand" game.. I called various dealers in Southern California and they told me the same thing.. :x

Anyways, its definitely not fair and full of BS in ripping off consumers big time!!
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It's no better down the road at North Hollywood Toyota and those dumbies told me the battery had a 8 yr warranty, it's 10 in California. They want $5k mark up.

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It's no better down the road at North Hollywood Toyota and those dumbies told me the battery had a 8 yr warranty, it's 10 in California. They want $5k mark up.

I agree, North Hollywood Toyota and Hollywood Toyota in California are the King of Toyota Rip-OFFS, especially for the Prius.. They'll charge you mark up + make you buy a stupid options that you dont need, like Paint protectant(so called special wax, and a studid expensive alarm and etc..)

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It's no better down the road at North Hollywood Toyota and those dumbies told me the battery had a 8 yr warranty, it's 10 in California. They want $5k mark up.

I agree, North Hollywood Toyota and Hollywood Toyota in California are the King of Toyota Rip-OFFS, especially for the Prius.. They'll charge you mark up + make you buy a stupid options that you dont need, like Paint protectant(so called special wax, and a studid expensive alarm and etc..)

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I can also vouch for Miller Toyota in Culver City California. Got my silver #8 there at MSRP. Steve in the Internet Sales Department was a pleasure to deal with. No hassles, honest dealing and he kept me informed as to the progress from the day of order till the day of delivery. Be sure to drop my name if and when you contact him. No spiffs involved, just passing along the name of an honest car salesman. I know that sounds like an oxymoron.

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First of all, when they sold me my 2003 Prius just a few months before the 04 came out, they tried to markup the price. What a load. What kind of dealer marks up the price of a car right before a new model comes out?

Secondly, about 4 months after I got my car, there was some kind of power failure - i.e. my car lost power on the road. I brought it in to Santa Monica Toyota and they said that it would take 4 weeks for the part to arrive. So they HELD MY CAR for FOUR WEEKS waiting for some sort of part which they STILL haven't explained to me what went wrong. Get this, on my way back home after I finally got my car back, it LOST POWER again. This dealer is compeltely incompetent. They held the car for 4 weeks and could not fix the problem.

After another week of them having my car, I asked them if they were keeping it on a trickle charger to prevent the battery from discharging. After asking that question, the representative on the phone seemed to be surprised and said "well..uh.. the technicians take care of things like that".

A few months after I got my car back the second time I got a flat tire. I brought it to the dealer to be repaired after I had put the donut on. When they held the car for 5 hours just to repair a flat tire, they called me up to say I could come get it. When I got there, they drove the car out from the service area WITH THE DONUT STILL ON. They were going to let me drive away with the freakin' donut still on my car. When I pointed it out to the representative helping me, he said that they would put the tire back on. After waiting another half hour I finally could take my car home again.

On the way home, I checked the pressure of the repaired flat tire, and it was 16.5 PSI. They did not even have the decency to inflate the tire to the correct pressure after repairing it.

Then the next week on the road the flat opened on the freeway and as I drove to the exit ramp and to the nearest gas station they said that because the flat opened, my front two tires sustained damage. I looked and they were correct, my tires did indeed sustain damage from me having to drive with one flat tire. That meant I had to spend $150 getting replacement tires from a gas station.

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**If you live in the Los Angeles area, I recommend buying from Miller Toyota-Culver City.. There's no pressure involved.. Ask for the Sales Manager named, Marcello.. He'll give you the best deal ever!! Here's his phone number 818-335-0459. Just tell him Rick who bought the Silver Prius package #9 in the beginning of April , recommended you and he'll take care of you..**

I had exactly the opposite experience. I emailed Miller Toyota of Culver City and they told me that I could sign up for their 2-4 month waiting list IF I AGREED TO PAY $2000 OVER STICKER. I said no thanks, and that was that. I would definitely be cautious in dealing with Miller Toyota of Culver City.

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That's interesting. My experience at Miller was no hassle and the car at MSRP. I have to believe that is the salesman doing that and not a corporate policy. Since each dealership has a limited allotment of Prius, the salesmen are only allowed to sell what comes in, in turn. Unlike the models of cars they can get all they can sell, the Prius has created a new system. Each salesman has HIS OWN list of people waiting for the car. If the less scrupulious (sp?) salesman thinks he can make a few more dollars selling over MSRP, he is quoting you that price to get on HIS list. The higher over MSRP determins how far up you are on HIS list. Those willing to pay the most over MSRP are the first ones he is going to sell to. Try dealing with another salesman and see what happens.
With all that said, don't forget the basic rule of business. Money talks. In our "supply and demand" economy, the supply verses the demand sets the price. All the "tree huggers" in Southern California have made the Prius a rare and expensive commodity around here. If your are unwilling to pay a premium at this point, your choice is wait, or look in other markets for the car. Dealerships in smaller markets and out of state might your best bet if you want the car soon, or even this year. A plane ticket to somewhere might be a lot cheaper, and the road trip more fun, than dealing with a So Cal dealer. We keep hearing stories of Prius sitting on the lot in little dealerships scattered about the country. And the gas to drive it back to Los Angeles won't cost you much.

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